Andrew Puzder

Andrew Puzder is CEO of CKE Restaurants, Inc., which employs about 21,000 people at Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s restaurants. He is co-author of “Job Creation: How it Really Works and Why the Government doesn’t Understand it.”

Last Friday’s jobs report was dismal. The labor force participation rate, that is, the percentage of the total population that is either working or actively seeking employment, dropped to 63.3%. That’s the lowest rate since May of 1979.

Trying to figure out what the “official” unemployment rate means can be very frustrating. Much of what we hear is complex and counter intuitive. The numbers seem inconsistent with what people are experiencing and many people are simply losing interest.